The female attendant's gaze fell on the belt. Her professional eye immediately recognized that it was no ordinary item.
The twenty-four moonstones set evenly into it were especially notable. Each one contained a faint ripple of Soul Power.
"Then..."
Ye Feng continued:
"Get me a Storage Soul Tool with around ten cubic meters of space. A bracelet or necklace will do."
The female attendant was taken aback for a moment, then the smile on her face grew even more deferential.
Appraising and exchanging a Storage Soul Tool was big business.
"Certainly, sir. Please wait a moment."
She didn't dare delay. She immediately turned and hurried into the back room.
Before long, a middle-aged man in brocade robes with a slightly plump build followed her out.
The man looked to be in his forties. A genial smile always hung on his face, but his slightly squinted eyes glittered with the shrewdness unique to a businessman.
As soon as he stepped out, his gaze locked onto the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges on the counter.
He took just one look, and his breathing imperceptibly hitched for an instant.
"Esteemed guest, please come inside. We can discuss things in a private room."
The middle-aged man smiled and made an inviting gesture.
Ye Feng nodded and followed him across the main hall into an elegant private room.
They took their seats, guest and host, and a maid served them fragrant tea before quietly withdrawing.
Only then did the middle-aged man pick up the belt on the table and examine it carefully, running his fingertips over each of the twenty-four moonstones.
"A fine item. Truly a fine item."
After praising it, he set the belt back on the table and pushed it toward Ye Feng. His smile never changed, but his words made the air freeze in an instant.
"This Storage Soul Tool is stolen, isn't it?"
His tone was casual, as if he were chatting about the weather, but the words were like a sharp knife stabbing straight to the heart of the matter.
"Someone of your station couldn't afford a Storage Soul Tool of this grade."
Ye Feng's face, hidden beneath his hood, twitched.
Damn... what a sharp tongue!
He'd laid all his cards on the table right away, without even bothering to beat around the bush.
Did he really have to ask where it came from?
"Does the Seven Treasure Shop buy it or not?"
Ye Feng couldn't be bothered to play along. He tossed the question right back at him.
Hearing this, the middle-aged man didn't get angry. Instead, he laughed, and his narrowed eyes gleamed even brighter.
"Heh heh, we buy it. Of course we do."
He picked up his teacup and gently blew away the foam.
"But the price won't be what it would normally be."
"After all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect deals in honest business!
Taking care of an item with such an unclear origin puts us at considerable risk."
Honest business?
Ye Feng sneered inwardly.
Could honest business make you the richest force on the continent? Just by selling all those glittering gemstones? As if!
But his expression didn't betray a thing. He merely stared coldly at the other man.
"Then tell me, what would be a fair price?"
"Heh heh, you're a straightforward man, my friend!"
Seeing how agreeable he was, the middle-aged man's smile grew a little more genuine.
"Since you're so generous, I, Ning Lan, won't cheat you.
This Storage Soul Tool has a total of twenty-four cubic meters. I'll offer you six thousand five hundred Gold Soul Coins per cubic meter. How does that sound?"
"That's too low."
Ye Feng couldn't help speaking up.
He wasn't fully familiar with the market for Storage Soul Tools, but he'd read about it in books.
"On the Douluo Continent, even the most ordinary Storage Soul Tool costs at least eight thousand Gold Soul Coins per cubic meter.
A mid-grade item of this quality, with a bit of renown behind it, would be worth at least twelve thousand Gold Soul Coins per cubic meter!"
That old fox had slashed the price by nearly half right off the bat!
"Heh heh, my friend, that's not quite right."
Ning Lan leisurely set down his teacup.
"Twelve thousand per cubic meter is the price the Seven Treasure Shop sells them for.
That's the price for esteemed guests of clean and reputable standing."
"But yours..."
He pointed to the belt on the table:
"Its origin is unclear. If we take it in, we'll have to go to great lengths to erase the spiritual imprint on it, then find a special channel to sell it through.
If the original owner comes knocking, the Seven Treasure Shop will have to take on the risk and clean up the trouble for you. Those are all costs."
"How about this?"
Ning Lan slapped his thigh, as if he had reached a difficult decision:
"I'll make one more concession. Seven thousand Gold Soul Coins per cubic meter—that's my final offer! That's as far as I can go!"
"If you're not satisfied, feel free to take it to the other shops in the city and ask around. See if they dare to buy it, and what price they'd offer."
With that, Ning Lan leaned back in his chair and watched Ye Feng with a beaming smile. He picked up his teacup and said no more.
A barefaced threat.
He'd got me right where he wanted me!
Ye Feng clenched the fist hidden beneath his black robe, then slowly relaxed it.
He knew the other man was telling the truth.
Aside from the Seven Treasure Shop, there probably wasn't another place in Aolin City willing to take on this hot potato.
Even if there was, they'd only drive the price lower—or might even kill him and take the item.
Forget it. It was something he'd gotten for free anyway. If he could turn it into clean money and a new Storage Soul Tool he urgently needed, then he'd accept getting fleeced.
"Fine."
Ye Feng's voice remained hoarse.
"I'll take your offer.
Get me a ten-cubic-meter Storage Soul Tool in a bracelet style.
Turn the rest into Gold Soul Coin cards."
"Good! Deal!"
Ning Lan's smile instantly bloomed like a Chrysanthemum.
He clapped his hands briskly.
Before long, a maid entered carrying an exquisite red sandalwood box and respectfully placed it in front of Ye Feng.
Ye Feng opened the box.
Inside lay a silver bracelet. It had a simple design, with no unnecessary decorations on its surface.
It looked good.
Ye Feng picked up the bracelet and infused it with Soul Power. He swept it with his spiritual power and confirmed that it indeed contained a stable space of around ten cubic meters.
Then he slipped it onto his wrist.
"This Storage Soul Tool is worth one hundred and ten thousand Gold Soul Coins,"
Ning Lan explained from beside him.
"Your Storage Soul Tool belt comes to a total of one hundred and sixty-eight thousand Gold Soul Coins. After deducting the cost, the remaining fifty-eight thousand Gold Soul Coins have all been converted into Gold Soul Coin cards. Please keep this safe."
As he spoke, he pushed a purple-gold card toward Ye Feng.
What a damn rip-off.
One hundred and ten thousand for a ten-cubic-meter Storage Soul Tool.
Ye Feng cursed again inwardly, but his hands moved without hesitation.
He picked up the Gold Soul Coin card and, after confirming it was correct, transferred everything he'd originally hidden inside the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges—the few Soul Beast Illustrated Handbooks, more than a thousand Gold Soul Coins, and the Gold Soul Coin card he'd just received—into his new bracelet Storage Soul Tool, right in front of Manager Ning.
Once he was done, he stood up, placed the now-empty belt on the table, and turned to leave without another word.
Watching Ye Feng's retreating figure, Ning Lan could no longer suppress the smile on his face. It nearly stretched from ear to ear.
He picked up the Storage Soul Tool belt and fondled it lovingly.
What a treasure!
Before you continue